Central Ohio Beekeeper Pres. on allergies

Dry eyes, itchy throat, insistent sneezing; all of the symptoms you are already experience or are slated to experience this allergy season. Pollen (and carbs) have long been your enemy but for other people, all they’re asking for is more pollen. Take Rodney Pritchard for example. He’s the president of the Central Ohio Beekeepers Association.

“While allergy sufferers pray for less, beekeepers hope for more and a wide variety of pollen,” he said.

He says we’re in the midst of an average spring as far as pollen counts although tree pollen is higher than normal, made even more extreme with the dry weather. Pritchard said tree pollen is great for bees.

“They use this protein to produce ‘bee bread’ to fed young bees that are now being produced in the hive.”

Though he’s pleased with all the pollen, he sympathizes with allergy suffers and offers some helpful advice.

“Allergy sufferers that consume raw local honey are eating small particles of pollen that are not filtered out by large producers,” he said. “By eating these small amounts of pollen, it allows the body to build up the immune system.”

Ohio currently has approximately 30,000 colonies of bees. If you’ve ever cursed a bee for your obnoxious sneezing episodes, you’d be fairly accusing them of the problem in your sinuses.

“The bee do not contribute to allergies,” said Pritchard. “Bees remove the pollen and store it in the hive as food. This removes the pollen from becoming airborne and contributing to those of us that suffer each year.”

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